As an insurance professional in Alabama, my online connections often ask me a very loaded question: "Joseph, how much life insurance do I need." My response is always, "It depends."

Your life insurance needs (the amount you need, the duration of the need, a permanent solution or a term policy) vary depending on where your family situation is today, what it will be in 5-10 years, and what it will be in the long run. As your life changes, so does your insurance needs.

Starting the conversation of your life insurance needs is an important (and very smart) first step! I am honored to serve as a resource for you and your family during this very important process.

I have a FREE GIFT for you! Simply email me at Joseph@ThePuckettAgency.com and request a free copy of "The Little Book of Life Essentials" that I can mail to you right away. This small booklet has a wealth of information on various factors to consider when determining the amount of life insurance you need, the term that it is needed, whether to go with a permanent policy vs. a term policy, and how life changes impact all of the above!

When you travel, your "property" like luggage, clothing, computer, and other personal items can be covered from perils such as fire, theft, vandalism, and more by your homeowners insurance policy (or renter, condo, manufactured home, or mobile home insurance policies). Contact your local agent today to discuss what your coverage limits are for your 'stuff' especially before taking a trip with the family or for business. You may need additional coverages if you have many of a specific item like technology, collectibles, firearms, etc. If you are in the state of Alabama, and are looking for a local insurance agent who can help your family protect what's most important - I'd be honored to help!

Round one of March Madness is in the books, and it was a wacky one for us. After round one, we weren't all that upset with a 17-14-2 record thanks to a 12-3-1 day on Friday.

Then came Saturday.

We went just 2-6 and were once again down in the dumps about our bracket.

Then came Sunday.

Once again, we redeemed ourselves after a rough first day with a 6-2 mark, going 8-8 over the weekend to get us back to 25-22-2. While still not where we want to be, we can't say we are all that upset to still have a winning record in this crazy 2010 March Madness bracket.

What a wild day in the 2010 NCAA Basketball Tournament and what a wild day for us here at Stock Lemon. After a rough 5-11-1 tournament start, we rebounded today in a big way with an impressive 12-3-1 day, giving us a first round record of 17-13-2 and a tournament record to date of 17-14-2. Our goals are a bit higher overall, but after a disastrous and upset filled first day, we are glad to be back on track.

As you can see by the bracket above, we circled our winners in green and crossed out our losing picks in red. Games that pushed earned a nice little light blue underline. Overall, we were pretty consistent all across the board.

Fact: That won't stop us from betting on the play-in game, which determines who gets the right to continue the above fact. Enough with the fun 2010 March Madness facts, let's kick off March Madness with our first Free NCAA Basketball Pick:

Winthrop -4 over Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Apologies to the Golden Lions faithful, we think Winthrop has the edge.

Good luck and stay tuned for a complete first round bracket full of picks later tonight!

It happens every year at this time. People can't wait for the start of March Madness, to fill out their bracket at work or a website they frequent. But why stop there? Why not fill out a bracket at ten websites?

If you're like us, you like to warm up to March Madness and the NCAA Tournament with some action on the conference tournaments.

We particularly enjoy the mid-major championships, though there are plenty of good looking lines in the bigger tournies as well. We will get to some of them, but tomorrow we have one Free NCAA Basketball pick and it is the Northeast Conference Championship Game.

Quinnipiac -4 1/2 over Robert Morris

Quinni has not covered yet in their tournament, but so bet it. They are simply the better team, and we aren't about to forget the 12-point win on Robert Morris' home floor only a short time ago. Quinnipiac is our play to get March Madness underway.

Things have slowed down a bit here at Stock Lemon since the Super Bowl has passed, but fear not loyal lemonheads -- we are gearing up for a big month.

As we mentioned earlier in the week, we will be all over March Madness, similar to our insight during the Super Bowl. And in order to ensure quality consistent content, we are reaching out once again to aspiring sports bloggers looking to join the Stock Lemon stable of writers.

To inquire about a writing position, please e-mail us at stocklemonblog@gmail.com.

Regardless of the new additions, though, we're looking forward to an eventful March!